[06/06/07 - 10:41 AM]Fremantlemedia and @radicaL.media Ink Groundbreaking Development Deal This new arrangement expands upon the companies' joint success with the groundbreaking interview series, "Iconoclasts," which is about to enter its third season.

[via press release from FremantleMedia]

FremantleMedia and @radical.media Ink Groundbreaking Development Deal

Global TV Powerhouse to Enable Worldwide Distribution of @radical.media TV and Film Projects Marking New Era in Branded Entertainment

NEW YORK -- David Ellender, CEO, FremantleMedia Enterprises (FME), and Robert Friedman, President, Media & Entertainment at @radical.media, today announced the signing of a first-look development deal between FME and award-winning, multi-genre content producer, @radical.media, signaling the launch of a new alliance which will enable the worldwide distribution of traditional and non-traditional content across all platforms. The pact also signifies a concerted effort to develop and expand the reach of branded entertainment content on a global scale.

This new arrangement expands upon the companies' joint success with the groundbreaking interview series, Iconoclasts, which is about to enter its third season. The series, which was developed by @radical.media and produced for The Sundance Channel with Grey Goose Entertainment, has already been distributed into 39 countries by FME.

From its origins as one of the top producers of television commercials, @radical.media has evolved into a unique, multi-platform content company. In addition to continuing to produce award-winning commercials, the company is known for its expertise in television, feature films, music programming, photography, graphic and interactive design and the emerging field of branded content. Recent successful branded series produced by @radical.media include "The Gamekillers," a scripted reality dating show produced with advertising agency BBH and Unilever's Axe deodorant, which aired on MTV, "Fast Cars and Superstars: Gillette Young Guns Celebrity Race," a reality show that pairs twelve celebrities with top-ranked NASCAR drivers, a co-production with Michael Davies and BBDO that will air on primetime on ABC in the second quarter of 2007 among others. @radical.media TV credits also include the Emmy Award-winning series "10 Days That Changed The World" for the History Channel. In film, @radical.media produced "The Fog of War," Academy Award winner for Best Documentary, and the Grammy Award-winning "Concert for George."

Commenting on the new partnership, David Ellender said: "@radical.media has a tremendous reputation as being at the forefront of each new media frontier and has worked with some of the world's leading television networks, online properties, media agencies and brand marketers. We very much see this relationship as a marriage of their creative development and production expertise, with our international multi-media reach and we're really excited to be working with them to ensure we remain at the forefront of cutting-edge content."

"This new first-look partnership is a great opportunity for us to build upon our existing success as a producer and marketer of multi-media and branded content with one of the most important TV companies in the world," said Robert Friedman, President, Media and Entertainment at @radical.media. "Together, we look forward to developing high quality multi-platform productions for television and film, and distributing them worldwide through this global media powerhouse."

The arrangement, which takes effect immediately, is expected to bring at least two new television programs to worldwide audiences in 2008.

About @radical.media

With offices in New York, Los Angeles, London, Paris, Berlin and Sydney, @radical.media has created content across all genres for a wide range of media outlets and organisations including most of the commercial, digital and pay TV networks. @radical.media works closely with most of the large media companies including NBC/Universal, Fox, Time Warner & Disney studios as well as other leading global marketers such as Apple, Nike, Sony, Electronic Arts, American Express, Ford Motor Company, Pepsi, Motorola, and Nintendo.

@radical.media has also received critical acclaim in the feature film arena including "The Fog of War," Academy Award winner for Best Documentary and the Grammy Award-winning memorial for George Harrison titled "Concert for George." The company has helmed numerous documentaries, including Jay-Z's "Fade to Black," which was released by Paramount Classics, and IFC Film's "Metallica: Some Kind of Monster" which won Best Documentary at the Independent Spirit Awards. @radical.media is now in pre-production on several dramatic, scripted, reality and documentary films.

On the web, @radical.media also produced webisodes and other digital content multi-episode series for Ford, American Express and Burger King among others.

Most recently, @radical launched "driverTV," a first-of-its-kind multi-platform resource built to transform the way consumers shop for cars. As a VOD channel, "driverTV" is available in 28 million homes via the Comcast, Time Warner and Cox cable systems. driverTV.com is also available on the web.

About FremantleMedia Enterprises

FremantleMedia Enterprises (FME) is the commercial arm of FremantleMedia and comprises of Fremantle International Distribution (FID), FremantleMedia Licensing Worldwide (FLW) and Fremantle Home Entertainment (FHE).

FID has a network of international sales offices and licenses over 19,000 hours of programmes to 150 countries worldwide. FID's programming comes from in-house UK producer, talkbackTHAMES and from an increasing number of independent producers in the UK and internationally. Recent international successes include US ratings-toppers The Apprentice: Donald Trump and The Apprentice: Martha Stewart, hugely successful fashion reality series, Project Runway starring Heidi Klum, exquisite Brook Lapping production Catherine the Great and the music event special, Britney Spears: In the Zone.

FLW is the licensing division of FremantleMedia and exploits the company's many strong brands including the award winning international format, Idols and the cult children's classics, Rainbow and DangerMouse, across multiple off-screen platforms including merchandising campaigns, interactive and wireless support and music publishing. FHE is the home entertainment arm of FremantleMedia.

FremantleMedia is one of the largest international creators and producers of programme brands in the world, with leading prime time entertainment, drama, serial drama and factual entertainment programming produced in over 25 territories. International drama programmes include Germany's top rated serial drama, Gute Zeiten, Schlechte Zeiten (Good Times Bad Times), the UK's most successful police drama, The Bill, and Australia's top serial drama, Neighbours. The company's entertainment and factual entertainment hits range from the award winning international format, Idols, broadcast as the prime time show, American Idol, on FOX in the US, to the grime-busting format, How Clean is Your House? and factual entertainment series starring celebrity chef, Jamie Oliver, Jamie's Kitchen, as well as long-running gameshows like The Price Is Right. FremantleMedia is the production business of the RTL Group, Europe's largest television and radio broadcast company.